top
East Bay
East Bay
Indybay
Indybay
Indybay
Regions
Indybay Regions North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area North Coast Central Valley North Bay East Bay South Bay San Francisco Peninsula Santa Cruz IMC - Independent Media Center for the Monterey Bay Area California United States International Americas Haiti Iraq Palestine Afghanistan
Topics
Newswire
Features
From the Open-Publishing Calendar
From the Open-Publishing Newswire
Indybay Feature

Bay Area Testing Facility Gets Away With Murder

by via Stop Animal Exploitation NOW!
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture has penalized a Bay Area testing laboratory with only an "'Official Warning" for negligence after the lab dumped a rabbit – still alive – into a carcass freezer, and a national research watchdog group said it is shocked.
Bay Area Testing Facility Gets Away With 'Murder,' Charges National Watchdog Group; USDA Gives Pacific Biolabs 'Paper Slap on the Wrist' for Dumping Live Rabbit Into Carcass Freezer

Friday, January 16, 2015

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – The U.S. Dept. of Agriculture has penalized a Bay Area testing laboratory with only an "'Official Warning" for negligence after the lab dumped a rabbit – still alive – into a carcass freezer, and a national research watchdog group said it is shocked.

"The USDA has literally allowed Pacific Biolabs to get away with murder," said Michael A. Budkie, A.H.T., executive director of SAEN, which monitors the nation's research laboratories. "The lack of a meaningful penalty in this case is shocking."

The USDA cited Pacific Biolabs for the incident in an August 19, 2014 inspection report as a violation of standards for "animal handling," in connection to the rabbit's death.

But according to SAEN, the USDA has not gone nearly far enough.

SAEN had called for additional citations for unqualified personnel (shouldn't "qualified personnel" be able to tell if a rabbit is alive?) and inadequate veterinary care programs and the maximum federal fine in an Official Complaint to the USDA.

In the complaint, SAEN said: "In light of the drastic incompetence of Pacific Biolabs – and the potential pain and suffering caused to a rabbit who was put into a freezer while still alive – (we) must insist that you take the most severe action allowable under the Animal Welfare Act and immediately begin the process of issuing the maximum fine allowable against Pacific Biolabs at the completion of your investigation: $10,000 per infraction."

"SAEN has a message for this criminal facility – Pacific Biolabs is on our radar now, and we have launched our own investigation," added Budkie. "The USDA is the least of Pacific Biolabs' worries now."


http://www.all-creatures.org/saen/press-20150116.html


Stop Animal Exploitation NOW!
http://www.all-creatures.org/saen/index.html
Add Your Comments
We are 100% volunteer and depend on your participation to sustain our efforts!

Donate

$80.00 donated
in the past month

Get Involved

If you'd like to help with maintaining or developing the website, contact us.

Publish

Publish your stories and upcoming events on Indybay.

IMC Network